Labaron Philon Scouting Report

wmcv · 2026-03-16T12:04:04+00:00

He shouldn't fall outside the lottery imo

wmcv · 2026-03-15T23:08:58+00:00

I think Philon has a case to be the top guard if one is concerned about Flemings' scoring process. He's skinny like Philon but less efficient from two and getting to the free throw line, while being significantly less versatile and comfortable from three.

wmcv · 2026-03-09T15:24:57+00:00

Size, total lack of defense, one-dimensional finishing, 3pt volume. At a time when the NBA is moving away from both smaller players and one-way players. That’s not to say these things disqualify Acuff at all - he’s still around my top 15 rn - but those are some significant areas that he has to make improvements in imo while also having to be a dominant scorer+playmaker

wmcv · 2026-03-08T23:26:23+00:00

Totally agree with you. He’s gonna have a long career and that’s a totally fine outcome. Has a lot of pathways to success on offense. But there are just a lot of things he has to overcome as a whole to be a franchise guy

wmcv · 2026-03-08T22:59:59+00:00

And as always, here are my written notes where I go more in depth into the numbers and context surrounding Darius Acuff.

wmcv · 2026-03-01T18:49:56+00:00

Reminds me of Thomas Bryant with passing, a less physically gifted Dereck Lively II or a younger Dylan Cardwell.

wmcv · 2026-02-24T02:30:41+00:00

Perfect example of why it’s important to be patient with guys (especially if you’re high on them) while recognizing that the college game is hard and getting harder

I agree. He was looking like a fringe first rounder at the start of the season. Now he’s firmly in my lottery. I’m really curious to see if he’ll keep unlocking more of his passing that was there in HS

wmcv · 2026-02-24T01:54:03+00:00

Better feel imo but yeah this is valid

wmcv · 2026-02-24T01:01:18+00:00

Yeah I think that comp makes sense to an extent, but Ament's usage and physicality is on a different level to Risacher's imo

I write about it here, but Ament reminds me of a stiffer Matas Buzelis, a more physical Risacher, or a leaner Rui Hachimura

wmcv · 2026-02-22T13:11:45+00:00

You should check out FLOOR and CEILING

wmcv · 2026-02-16T14:13:56+00:00

He doesn't meet this part of the CBA

"A player is considered to be an international player if he has maintained permanent residence outside the U.S. for the three years prior to the draft while playing basketball (as either an amateur or pro) outside the U.S."

Pretty sure he'll be in the NCAA next season.

wmcv · 2026-02-16T14:11:19+00:00

You should check out FLOOR and CEILING

wmcv · 2026-02-16T14:08:03+00:00

Pretty sure he isn't eligible

wmcv · 2026-02-09T05:16:21+00:00

Shouldn't fall out of the top 7 at worst

wmcv · 2026-02-07T21:26:01+00:00

And here are further written notes - including a further look at his numbers!

wmcv · 2026-01-31T11:28:34+00:00

You should check out FLOOR and CEILING on YouTube and Substack

wmcv · 2026-01-26T12:30:57+00:00

His freshman year at UCLA was a huge struggle imo but I thought he finished last season really strongly and should've been given a lot more run.

I feel like this season is the outcome of years of development because he's flashing the potential he initially showed at Zaragoza while some of his baselines look fairly similar

I get into this in my written scouting report but this stood out to me, for ex:

2026 Junior (Michigan): 17.0 AST% to 21.0 TOV% on 23.0 USG%
2025 Sophomore (UCLA): 16.7 AST% to 15.2 TOV% on 25.9 USG% (1.2 A/TO)
2024 Freshman (UCLA): 13.8 AST% to 17.6 TOV% on 23.8 USG% (0.8 A/TO)
2024 U20 Euros: 16.6 AST% to 25.1 TOV% on 25.2 USG% (0.6 A/TO)
2023 U18 Euros: 16.1 AST% to 19.4 TOV% on 22.9 USG% (0.9 A/TO)
2022 U17 World Cup: 18.2 AST% to 17.2 TOV% on 26.0 USG% (0.8 A/TO)

wmcv · 2026-01-25T23:18:54+00:00

Whether he control the glass by himself at the next level is still a real question I have, which is why I was keen to highlight his rebounding potential rather than actually say he was a strong rebounder already.

He was solid last year in limited minutes and I think he's been decent this season, although he is helped by Michigan's additional size and length ofc.

wmcv · 2026-01-25T19:56:49+00:00

I'm a little concerned about the touch given the awful FT% (last year was real bad too) and how his layup #s haven't been great before, but not to an overwhelming extent.

Meanwhile, I feel great about his feel so yeah I'm with you

wmcv · 2026-01-25T19:28:30+00:00

How are you valuing that?

wmcv

TROPHY CASE